San Diego

Residents Still Shaken Over College-Area Police Shooting

Many residents living closest to the crime scene are not allowed to return home

An investigation continued Monday into a shooting at a College-area condominium complex that left a suspected shooter dead and two police officers hurt.

Officers responding to a violent disturbance call were shot at just after 11 p.m. Saturday at the Tuscany Place apartment complex on the 4800 block of Rolando Court, police said. 

Two officers were struck by gunfire but are expected to make full recoveries, San Diego police Chief David Nisleit said.

"I'm blessed that none of our officers died," he said. "We have one who is very seriously injured, but it looks like he'll make a full recovery so I'm very thankful for that."

The suspect was dressed in body armor when he started shooting at officers, the chief said.

He was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators were working to determine if he was killed by police gunfire or by a self-inflicted gunshot.

The apartment complex where the shooting took place was still a crime scene Monday morning.

Some police tape was taken down in the morning hours, but residents living closest to where the shooting occurred were still being kept out of their home. There is no word on when they will be able to return home.

In the moments after the shooting, frightened residents scrambled for safety.

With only two words, Triston Peyton described the feeling of that night: "Gunshots and horror." 

Many residents were still shaken by the gunfire, replaying the events of Saturday night well into Sunday.

"It’s crazy. It’s scary. It’s frightening," Shaira Whitaker said.

Whitaker was in town on vacation for a few days before returning to Phoenix. She was with her parents when the shooting occurred. Whitaker was in a daze not knowing exactly what happened.

Michael O’Bannon-el was at home with his wife when it happened.

"All of a sudden we hear a series of gunshots going off like random like at least 13 pop-pop-pop-pop-pop, and so me and my wife get down on the ground," he said.

Peyton said he heard the suspect arguing with someone before the shooting, but he still did not believe his ears when shots rang out. Peyton was living about 30 steps from where everything happened.

"At first I thought it was like trash cans banging," he said. "I didn’t take it as serious."

In a short period of time, though, what was a daze and fog became a horrifying reality.

"We were escorted out and we saw a police officer with her gun pointed up the staircase and I was like this is serious this is a big deal," Whitaker said.

For O’Bannon-el, who lived here for just over a year, he could not believe something like this happened so close to home. His apartment was one building over from where the shooting took place.

"It just makes me think, 'when is the violence going to stop?'" O’Bannon-el said.

"We're moving backwards. It's getting more violent like, every day, every second."

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